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While you probably don’t need much help finding your own seasonal programming, please accept an early gift in the shape of a Michelle Pfeiffer holiday movie. Then, as a non-festive chaser of alternatives, consider the following — music doc, period western, dog tale and a biography of a classic TV icon. Merry viewing!
● Oh. What. Fun. (movie premières Wednesday, Dec. 3 on Prime Video)
Some will find this holiday family movie relatable — painfully, regretably relatable and others will be cheering, possibly drunkenly, and considering their own domestic job action.
Claire (hello, Michelle Pfeiffer, but what’s the deal with the accent?) has been taken for granted once too often by her husband (Denis Leary) and family (including Jason Schwartzman). Her escape takes her to the stage of the annual holiday mom contest, hosted by Zazzy Tims (Eva Longoria).
The simplest drinking game here — knock one back every time either Zazzy or Claire takes a drink — could be medically unwise.
● It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley (documentary film premières Thursday, Dec. 4, on HBO/Crave)
Part of the HBO Music Box documentary series, this looks at the life of one of the most influential singer-songwriters of the 1990s.
While his name might not be top of mind among younger fans, he gets kudos from the likes of Thom Yorke of Radiohead, Matt Bellamy of Muse, Aimee Mann, Adele and Alanis Morissette. He died in 1997 at age 30 after going swimming in a Tennessee river. No trace of drugs or alcohol.
Instead, Jeff’s weight was the legacy of Tim Buckley, the folk-icon father who abandoned him at six months and died by suicide at age 28. Those are the tough bits. The beauty comes from Jeff’s ethereal voice (listen to his album Grace) and his prolific output.
Often cited in this documentary is Jeff’s eerie certainty that he would not live long enough to enjoy the reverence his music still holds. Find his version of Hallelujah. (Sorry not sorry Mr. Cohen.)
● The Abandons (series premières with all 10 episodes on Thursday, Dec. 4, on Netflix)
Set in a town called Angel’s Ridge in 1854, this western centres on the love and land dealings between two families headed by widowed women: one of imperious land owners and the other the title’s assemblage of outcasts.
Frontier women arming against each other conjures memories of another excellent (though painfully short-lived) western, Godless (2017, streaming on Netflix).
● Merv (movie premières Wednesday, Dec. 10, on Prime Video)
Anna (Zooey Deschanel, New Girl) and Russ (Charlie Cox, Daredevil) have consciously uncoupled. Merv, their mutt, is in deep denial. So they all go to Florida for a vacation. Well, not together together, but they end up together trying to cheer up Merv. (Clever Merv.)
That is a thin plot. But such gorgeous shmaltz! (There’s even a scene in which all three do a downward dog in yoga class.) Everyone will believe in Anna and Russ, but especially in Merv.
● American Masters: Starring Dick Van Dyke (documentary premières Friday, Dec. 12, on PBS, PBS Passport app)
Arriving a day before the TV icon’s 100th birthday, this doc will satisfy the nostalgia cravings of some, while helping younger viewers better appreciate the old guy who danced barefoot in Coldplay’s 2024 video for All My Love.
The doc covers the eight decades of Dick Van Dyke’s career, from radio DJ and nightclub act to star of his eponymous 1960s TV series and classic movies that include Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Interviews with Julie Andrews, Carol Burnett, Jim Carrey, Ted Danson, Steve Martin, Conan O’Brien and Martin Short are lined up alongside archival clips from the late greats Walter Cronkite, Mary Tyler Moore and Carl Reiner.
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